Two-photon absorption in Rhodamine 6G using the second harmonic of a pulsed Q-switched Nd:YAG laser has been studied by photoacoustic technique. It is observed that there is a competition between one-photon and two-photon absorption processes. At lower concentration the two-photon process is predominant over the one-photon process.

Observation of laser induced two-photon photoemission optogalvanic (TPPOG) effect from tungsten electrode in a discharge cell using 564 nm radiation obtained from a pulsed dye laser is described. The magnitude of the POG signal is studied as a function of laser energy under various discharge parameters. Competition between one-photon and two-photon processes has been observed when nitrogen gas is used in the discharge cell.

We report the use of an open photoacoustic cell configuration
for the evaluation of thermal effusivity of liquid crystals. Initially, the
method is calibrated using water and glycerol as transparent liquid
samples, and the role of thermal conductivity of these liquids on the
photoacoustic signal amplitude is discussed. To demonstrate the application
of the present method for the evaluation of thermal effusivity of
liquid crystals, we have used certain multicomponent nematic liquid crystal
mixtures, namely BL001, BL002, BL032, and BL035. Each of these
liquid crystal mixtures contains four to nine components and are primarily
based on the cyanobiphenyl structure. The measured values of thermal
effusivity of BL001 and BL002 were found to be almost the same, but
differ from those of BL032 and BL035, which implies a difference in
composition of the latter two from the former two mixtures.

Optical absorption studies of free base and rare earth incorporated phthalocyanine doped borate glass matrix are reported for the first lime. The absorption spectra recorded in the UV- VIS region show two well defined absorption bands of phthalocyanine (Pc) molecule, namely the Soret band (B) and the Q band. The Q band always shows its characteristic splitting in all the doped glass matrices and the intensities of these components are found to vary from one Pc to another. Some of the important optical parameters, namely optical absorption coefficient (a), molar extinction coefficient (ε), absorption cross section (σa), oscillator strength (f), electric dipole strength (q2), absorption half bandwidth (Δλ) of the principal optical transitions have also been evaluated. Moreover, the spectral dependence of refractive index (n) and thereby the optical dielectric constant (ε) on wavelength yielded values of carrier concentration to effective mass ratio (N/m*) of the phthalocyanine molecule in the present glassy systems. Optical band gap (Eg) and width of the band tail (Et) are computed and their variations among the prepared samples are also discussed.

Optical emission studies of C2 molecules in plasma obtained by Nd:YAG
laser ablation of graphite in a helium atmosphere are reported for irradiances in the
range (1–9:2/ x 1010 W cm−2. The characteristics of the spectral emission intensity
from the C2 (Swan band) species have been investigated as functions of the
distance from the target, ambient pressure and laser irradiance. Estimates of
vibrational temperatures of C2 species under various irradiance conditions are
made. Results of measurements performed under different ambient helium gas
pressures are also discussed.

A novel fibre optic sensor for the in situ measurement of the rate of deposition of thin films has been developed. Evanescent wave in the uncladded portion of a multimode fibre is utilised for this sensor development. In the present paper we demonstrate how this sensor is useful for the monitoring of the deposition rate of polypyrrole thin films, deposited by an AC plasma polymerisation method. This technique is simple, accurate and highly sensitive compared with existing techniques.

Files in this item: 1

Optical limiting and thermo-optic properties of C60 in toluene are studied using 532 nm, 9 ns pulses from a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser. Optical limiting studies in these fullerene molecules lead to the conclusion that reverse saturable absorption is the major mechanism for limiting properties in these molecules. Thermal lensing measurements are also performed in fullerene solutions. The quadratic dependence of thermal lens signal on incident energy confirms that enhanced optical absorption by the sample via excited triplet state absorption may play a leading role in the limiting property.

Optical absorption and emission spectral studies of various phthalocyanine molecules, viz., LaPc, NdPc, SmPc, EuPc, CuPc and ZnPc in a polymer matrix of cyano acrylate are reported for the first time. All the absorption spectra show an intense B band (Soret) in the UV region followed by a weaker Q band in the visible region. The positions of the Q and B bands are found to have dependence on the metallic substitution. Values of the important spectral parameters, viz., molar extinction coefficient (ϵ), oscillator strength (f), radiative transition rate and decay time of the excited singlet state are also presented and compared with other solid matrices. The recorded fluorescence spectrum shows two broad emission bands in the case of NdPc, whereas for ZnPc only a very weak band is observed. The absence of emission bands for the other metallated phthalocyanines is attributed to increased spin orbit interaction and intersystem crossing.

Files in this item: 1

Optical absorption and emission spectral studies of various phthalocyanine (Pc) molecules in PVA matrix have been reported for the first time. The recorded spectra are analyzed to get the important spectral parameters, such as optical absorption cross-section (σa), emission cross-section (σe), oscillator strength (f), fluorescence bandwidth (Δλ), emission wavelength (λ), radiative decay time (τ) and optical gain (G). Analysis shows that the emission cross-section and optical gain are maximum in the NdHPc2-doped PVA matrix. However, a comparison of the calculated emission parameters with that of borate glass matrix show that they are many times smaller in the present matrix.

Absorption spectra of formaldehyde molecule in the gas phase have been recorded using photoacoustic (PA) technique with pulsed dye laser at various power levels. The spectral profiles at higher power levels are found to be different from that obtained at lower laser powers. Two photon absorption (TPA) is found to be responsible for the photoacoustic signal at higher laser power while the absorption at lower laser power level is attributed to one photon absorption (OPA) process. Probable assignments for the different transitions are given in this paper.

An open cell photoacoustic (PA) configuration has been employed to evaluate the thermal diffusivity of intrinsic InP as well as InP doped with tin and iron. Thermal diffusivity data have been evaluated from variation of phase of PA signal as a function of modulation frequency. In doped samples, we observe a reduced value for thermal diffusivity in comparison with intrinsic InP. We also observed that, while the phase of the PA signal varies linearly with the square root of chopping frequency for doped samples, the intrinsic material does not exhibit such behaviour in the experimental frequency range. These results have been interpreted in terms of the heat generation and phonon assisted heat diffusion mechanisms in semiconductors.

An open-cell configuration of the photoacoustic (PA) technique is employed to determine the thermal and transport properties of intrinsic Si and Si doped with B (p-type) and P (n-type). The experimentally obtained phase of the PA signal under heat transmission configuration is fitted to that of theoretical model by taking thermal and transport properties, namely, thermal diffusivity, diffusion coefficient, and surface recombination velocity, as adjustable parameters. It is seen from the analysis that doping and also the nature of dopant have a strong influence on the thermal and transport properties of semiconductors. The results are interpreted in terms of the carrier-assisted and phonon-assisted heat transfer mechanisms in semiconductors as well as the various scattering processes occurring in the propagation of heat carriers.

S1 to S3 excited singlet state absorption and two-photon absorption in Rhodamine 6G at the pump wavelengths of 532 and 1064 nm respectively are investigated. The advantages of employing the pulsed photoacoustic technique for conveniently observing excited singlet state absorption are discussed. It is shown that, since photoacoustics and fluorescence are complementary phenomena, analysis using both techniques will yield a better understanding of optical processes in molecules like Rhodamine 6G.

Pulsed photoacoustic studies in solutions of C70 in toluene are made using the 532-nm radiation from a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser. It is found that contrary to expectation, there is no photoacoustic (PA) signal enhancement in the power-limiting range of laser fluences. Instead, the PA signal tends to saturate during optical power-limiting phenomenon. This could be due to the enhanced optical absorption from the photoexcited state and hence the depletion of the ground-state population. PA measurements also ruled out the possibility of multiphoton absorption in the C70 solution. We demonstrate that the nonlinear absorption leading to optical limiting is mainly due to reverse saturable absorption.

Files in this item: 1

Non-destructive testing d multilayer dielectric coatings (SiO2/TiO2
structure) has been carried out using the photoacoustic technique. This
technique makes use d a 10 mW He-Ne laser, a photoacoustic cell and a lock-in
amplifier. The chopped He-Ne laser beam is allowed to fall on the sample
placed in a photoacoustic cell. The acoustic signals thus generated are detected
using a microphone and the resulting output is processed by a lock-in amplifier.
The amplitude and phase of the signals were measured as a function of the
chopping frequency. Striking step-like variations are observed in me phase
against frequency plot which dearly reveals the different layers present in the
multilayer structure.

We discuss an open photoacoustic cell study on sulfer-doped
n-type InP wafer. The thermal diffusivity of the sample is evaluated from
the phase data associated with the photoacoustic signal as a function of
the modulation frequency under heat transmission configuration. Analysis
is made on the basis of the Rosencwaig-Gersho theory and the results
are compared with those from earlier reported photoacoustic studies
of semiconductors. Our investigation clearly indicates that the
instantaneous thermalization process is the major heat diffusion mechanism
responsible for the photoacoustic signal generation in an InP
sample.

Complete thermal characterization of liquid crystal mixtures in the smectic
phase consisting of various relative volume fractions of cholesterol and
1-hexadecanol have been carried out using the photoacoustic technique.
Thermal diffusivity values of these liquid crystal mixtures are evaluated using
the open cell photoacoustic technique whereas the thermal effusivity value is
measured using the conventional photoacoustic technique. From the
measured values of these transient thermophysical parameters, the thermal
conductivity and heat capacity of the sample under investigation are
calculated. Analyses of the results show that all the thermophysical
parameters depend strongly on the volume fraction of the constituents.
Results are interpreted in terms of enhanced hydrogen bonding and the
consequent enhancement in cohesive thermal energy transport with
increasing volume fraction of 1-hexadecanol

We report a photoacoustic (PA) study of the thermal and transport properties of a GaAs epitaxial layer doped with Si at varying doping concentration, grown on GaAs substrate by molecular beam epitaxy. The data are analyzed on the basis of Rosencwaig and Gersho’s theory of the PA effect. The amplitude of the PA signal gives information about various heat generation mechanisms in semiconductors. The experimental data obtained from the measurement of the PA signal as a function of modulation frequency in a heat transmission configuration were fitted with the phase of PA signal obtained from the theoretical model evaluated by considering four parameters—viz., thermal diffusivity, diffusion coefficient, nonradiative recombination time, and surface recombination velocity—as adjustable parameters. It is seen from the analysis that the photoacoustic technique is sensitive to the changes in the surface states depend on the doping concentration. The study demonstrates the effectiveness of the photoacoustic technique as a noninvasive and nondestructive method to measure and evaluate the thermal and transport properties of epitaxial layers.

The photobleaching of the lasing dye Rhodamine 6G embedded in the solid
matrix poly(methyl methacrylate) was investigated using a photoacoustic technique.
Chopped laser radiation from an argon ion laser at four different wavelengths was used for
the study. Experimental results indicate that the photobleaching rate is directly proportional
to the incident laser power while it decreases with increase in concentration of the dye
molecules. In the present case we have not observed any dependence of photobleaching on
the chopping frequency. One-photon absorption is found to be responsible for the
photobleaching of the dye within the selected range of laser power